Since the announcement that the American Professional Golf (PGA) Tour will merge with the Saudi Arabian Sovereign Inflation Fund (PIF) to create a new for-profit corporation, unpredictable changes are continuing in the PGA Tour leadership.
Golf.com, an American golf media, recently published a planning article tracking various changes and issues within the PGA Tour. The biggest change was that the airflow of the tour changed as Tiger Woods, the ‘golf emperor’ who had refused to join live golf worth trillions of won, joined the board of six PGA Tour players.
Prior to the start of the FedEx Cup playoffs last weekend, players received word from PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan that Andy Fazder, a senior administrative officer, had resigned. The resignation of Fazthe, who had been involved in every decision on the tour for 34 years, was shocking.
Commissioner Monaghan, who returned after a month of sick leave due to the aftermath of the announcement of the merger with PIF, said, “Pazder informed the PGA Tour of his resignation and it will take effect immediately.” I will replace ‘,’ he sent a short memo to the players.
It was initially known as a merger between the PGA Tour and Live Golf.
The news of Fazder’s resignation was an important issue to inform the players. Previously serving as PGA Tour Vice President, Tour Operations Director, and Tournament Manager for the Champions Tour and Korn Ferry Tour, Fazder has been at the center of decisions the tour has made over the years, including changing the FedEx Cup playoff format.
At the same time, on July 26, he headed a committee that would come up with a policy to compensate players who did not join Liv Golf, and also headed a task force to find a way for Liv Golf players to return to the PGA Tour. Regarding Pasuder’s sudden resignation, the media evaluated that he was hardened.
Looking back in time, on June 6, Commissioner Monahan and PIF President Yasir Al-Rumayan appeared together on CNBC and made a surprise announcement. The fact that the players made the opposite decision against their previous words and actions caused the biggest backlash, but the content of the new corporation itself was also significant.
The content of the interview was based on the fact that the PIF merged with the PGA Tour to establish a company for profit. It also reaffirmed that Tours will remain a tax exempt institution. In addition, the new corporation is a commercial company jointly owned by PGA Tour, DP World Tour and PIF, and PIF will have a certain stake.
After the press conference, Monahan took a sick leave while facing heavy criticism, and returned about a month later on July 17th. In the meantime, he took over the tour’s administration and policy decisions with Tyler, managing director and chief operating officer, Ron Price.
Following Monaghan’s return, former AT&T executive Randall Stevenson, who resigned from the tour policy board, said, “In light of the 2018 U.S. intelligence report on Jamal Khashoggi regarding the PGA-PIF merger, post-merger support is a serious concern.” ‘ he said. It was implied that one of the biggest obstacles to the new corporation following the merger was related to maintaining the status of ‘Tour’s tax exempt agency’.
After Monaghan returned to work, the decision to join Woods on the players’ board followed after meeting with key players such as Jordan Spieth, Adam Scott, and Tiger Woods. This meant that players’ opinions were more reflected in the tour’s policy decisions.
The media paid attention to the statement Woods made public when he joined the board. Woods’ expression was defiant. “At a crucial point in tour history, the players stepped up and thanked Monahan for agreeing to address their concerns this time around,” he said. On the other hand, Monahan’s statement “promises to take necessary steps to restore the trust or confidence created by the sudden announcement of the agreement” contained a nuance of apology.
Another change is that former player Jason Gore has been promoted to a new position as vice president and chief athlete officer. Gore will be the person in charge of player relations and partnerships, providing a hotline between players and commissioners. He was also named on two committees headed by Pazzer and became the person in charge of the task force to study the return of live golf players and benefit programs for remaining tour players.안전놀이터
Monahan, who has to hold on to his shaky leadership, suddenly announced this spring that the PGA Tour would not adopt the model local rule that regulates golf ball distance performance presented by the United States Golf Association (USGA) and the British Royal Golf Association (R&A). It represents the opinions of the players as they are, but this also leaves the possibility of conflict with other associations in the future.
The real challenge lies in making a number of decisions with the PIF, including the tour schedule, financial structure, non-profit status, and absorption of Liv Golf players, all within four months. Monaghan professes that progress is positive. He emphasizes that ‘the model of the tour that has reached an agreement with the PIF will be sustainable’ and that ‘the players are actively participating’.
The problem is that his words stop at declarations. Scotty Scheffler’s words at the St. Jude Championship press conference represent the current confusion. “There was a basic agreement, but nobody’s sure what that means,” he said. “I feel like there’s a long way to go, so I don’t have much to say and I’m still negative about what’s happening.”
Meanwhile, on the 17th, Golf Digest reported that PIF President Al Rumayyan was avoiding the US Senate attendance. “Al-Rumayan is refusing to ask Congress to appear,” said Senator Richard Blumenthal of the Connecticut Standing Subcommittee of Investigations, according to documents released Wednesday. We need to explain our plan to the subcommittee,” he said.
Al Rumayyan is the founder of Live Golf. At a press conference on the merger with the PGA Tour, he was also known to have told Liv Golf players and staff that the league would continue. Accordingly, the Senate has urged the PIF to submit the requested materials by this week and to appear in the subcommittee on September 13th. The Senate also asked Greg Norman, CEO of Live Golf, to attend, but Norman also refused due to schedule reasons.
The US Congress is in the position that Alumayan will open the foreign investment committee as it is known that he will be the chairman of the newly established merger corporation. Blumenthal is also threatening to revoke the PGA Tour’s tax-exempt status if a for-profit association is formed between the PGA Tour and the PIF.
It is clear that the PGA Tour will reflect more the opinions of players who have refused to play live golf and remain, and their influence will work more. Among them, the essence of the PGA Tour as a tax-free organization, future negotiations with the PIF, and the way to absorb Liv Golf players can fall into a more difficult labyrinth. The final negotiation period for the merger is until the end of this year, but a solution has become farther away due to foreign exchange.